Hollinsed House — Hotel in Key West

We typically do condo rentals with lots of amenities so this was a different experience for us. ||||We checked in through a lockbox by the door and no front office/office on site. That is fine and it worked just perfectly. Parking is at a premium in the summer months so be prepared. There is an area for two cars on the property by the gate/fence, BUT if those are taken it's close to IMPOSSIBLE to find parking elsewhere. There is a parking place around the corner on Simonton but it's $3 an hour! If you can find one on the street that isn't marked for a private residence your in luck but don't count on that one. ||||The unit we were in was a 2 bedroom with a very small unvented bathroom. There is not a dishwasher so if you use dishes in the kitchen you will need to wash them. We typically cook in the unit because of dietary restrictions for our child, but didn't this time and spent quite a bit around Key West for food. Since you are on an island you expect to pay quite a bit more than you would off island (makes sense so be prepared). ||||We found a couple quaint places close to the unit to have a healthy breakfast at one morning and a great lunch another afternoon. Unfortunately, Deuces, Off the Hook is closing their location where we went so not sure if they are going to reopen close by. It's a very small place but great food and the service was wonderful. ||||The air conditioners have remote controls and there is one in each bedroom and one in the front room area to keep the unit plenty cool but they are loud so if you are a light sleeper bring your earplugs. ||||The unit is only a few blocks from the heart of it all. Quick walk to the docks or quick walk to Sloppy Joe's at the corner of Duvall & Greene. ||||I know you are NOT here to watch TV but if you have teenagers you are most likely going to have to figure it out. The property manager, Lois is very responsive and will get back with you quickly if questions. If you are in the unit we were in, you have to leave the TV stand doors open so that the remote will work. Be careful not to walk into the doors as you are leaving since teens have a tendency to not close things back up! ||||If you are going to do a lot of outside things and if your teens like to hang out a small, 3 ft 4in deep pool you will be fine here. If your teen needs other activities you might look to stay at Ocean Key House or another hotel offering a few more amenities for kids. ||||If we return without our teen we would stay here again but would not if kids are coming with us. (Just a tidbit for parents of teens). We were returning to Key West to have a ceremony for our dearly departed Papa (PapaDon 1998) so we were here for that and wanted our son to be part of it (although the few days there were a bit uneventful for him as a teenager!). If you bring a teen, bring a friend for him/her and I'm sure it would be...

My husband and I rented # 7 at Hollinsed House for 6 nights, 7 days. Due to allergies which was told to the caretaker of unit that we will bring all our bath towels and bed linens. We have a protective mattress cover that covers whole mattress and zips up. We even brought our own cooking utensils, etc. The first thing we noticed when we opened rental unit was the smell. It smelled like mold and mildew and this other smell that I can’t describe, but it permeated every inch of our clothes, linens and even plastic items. It was strange to see 3 room purifiers in the unit. We were shocked to see the mattress which was grossly soiled and when I say soiled it was huge dark and light stains combined that took up a large amount of the bed. If I didn’t have that protective mattress cover we would have left immediately. When we encased the mattress with that, inside the bed frame was huge amounts of room decor, bed linens, wall frames,||etc, stored. The rental floors,bathroom, kitchen counters were clean, but the dishes are the responsibility of the renter. We didn’t use their dishes, but when I saw some of these I washed them and scrubbed 2 pots and an oven rack. They had food left on them plus they were of such poor quality. I didn’t want anyone to get sick. ||Handles on cabinets were missing or half hanging off, shower shelf fell off in my hands while taking a shower, the towel rack holder was broken on back of door, the other 2 hooks were so corroded. The patio was cute, but very darkened at night. The sidelights were all broken and lying over. The closet space was limited and 2 closets were also used for storage packed full of which there were also 5 pillows which should be replaced each and every time due to health reasons. The grill was filthy. We went to grill steaks and my husband said no way are we using that. ||The AC unit runs and shuts off all night long. I bought ear plugs so I could sleep. I would never recommend this place to anyone with allergies. We tried to stay out of the unit as much as we could. It actually was making me ill. ||||Location wise it’s a great location, but # 7 needs big renovation. I sent owner a letter with pictures of what I have explained above and hopefully it will be gutted and renovated. I have not received any feedback from owner as of today. It could be an adorable rental, one without health hazards. I would never recommend this unit...

We've been staying exclusively at Hollinsed House for about 10 years -- visiting Key West 3 or 4 times a year. Key West is one of our favorite "getaway destinations". We've stayed in all of the studios, one of the 1 bdrm units, and 1 of the 2 bdrm units over the years. We have never been disappointed. The location is perfect. We park our car on arrival and don't get in it again until we are heading home -- we walk everywhere we want to go... most of our fav places are on one end or the other of Duval or on a side street of Duval. The website makes booking a room easy and is painless. Every unit we have stayed in (and we've stayed in some multiple times!) was clean, well stocked with kitchen utensils/pots/pans/dishes/coffeepot/toaster, etc., as well as linens and other items you might need. Can't say enough about this little piece of paradise. We've had a family reunion here with our sons and their spouses and they love it too. Is Key West more conducive to adults? Probably......